Clara
by PrettyGirl132
Summary: Clara Whitlock is a girl without a past, her life spent running from place to place with no home to speak of. What happens when she finds out she has a family somewhere and it was kept a secret from her? A story of hope, love, and reunion, but at what cost?
1. Prologue

**A/N: Thank you to The Reviewer who let me know about the formatting issue, enjoy!**

She gasped, eyes snapping open.

Where was she? Who was she? All she remembered was the pain. There was nothing before the pain. The pain was her entire existence.

She glanced around. Dust motes floated leisurely past her gaze. Nearby, a honeybee was paying attention to blooming fuchsias. The depth of their color amazed her. She could see, and hear for that matter, everything. A flock of birds flew above her head, catching her attention. She then realized she was in a dense forest and it was the dead of night. The grass underneath her was soft but failed to comfort her.

She was not alone.

"Hello," a light voice that was almost child-like whispered behind her. Immediately, she shot up, faced this stranger and knelt into a crouch, teeth bared. "Don't worry, everything's alright. I'm not going to hurt you," the figure cooed. She took in the stranger's appearance. Light, pillow-y hair that seemed to rest ever so perfectly atop her head, bright red eyes gazing into hers, a relaxed smile on her face. She was petite, couldn't have come up to her shoulder. She wore a dirty, ragged country dress and lacked any shoes. She was dangerous.

"Clara, listen to me. I am not your enemy. I am a friend, should you so desire. Call me Mary."

Clara. Her name was Clara.

"What-," she stopped her question, not recognizing her own voice. It seemed to ring in the air like a birdsong. She remembered her question, "What happened? Who am I? Where am I? How-,"

"You are Clara Whitlock, from Houston. We are outside Dallas now. I knew you wouldn't want to hurt anyone you cared about on your first day," she finished mysteriously with a grin. "As for what happened," she shrugged, "You were human, now you're not. You are one of us now. An immortal creature. Living off of the lives of others."

She started to remember. Whitlock. Houston. Her family. Oh, god, her family. Her distraught grandmother who raised her and lost her own children. Now she's lost one more. Someone else, a man she loved but lost in the war. Would she never see them again?

"What… what am I?" she asked with trepidation.

Mary lost any glint of mirth on her face, turning into a serious statue. "A vampire."


	2. Chapter 1

Jasper looked down at his lovely wife, content smile on his face. They had to enroll in high school again soon, and he was completely unexcited about it, but knew Alice enjoyed herself. She got an opportunity for people other than our family to see (and gawk) at her impeccable fashion sense. With a sigh, he recalled the swiftly losing battle he tried to fight with her about his wardrobe, he should have known from the start that that was an issue he was just going to have to drop. He stood no chance against her glistening doe eyes. He let his thoughts take him down memory lane some more, stroking Alice's hair as she laid comfortably on his chest. His life before Alice was pure agony. He wished he could die every day. He was so lost, so broken, mourning a life he could barely remember. A face flashed before his eyes before he could catch himself, and he squeezed his eyes shut to ward off the pain that came with it. Her. His daughter he only held once. It took a while after his change to remember his human life, but when he did, they came in flashes. Hugging his mother. Dancing with his sister. War. A beautiful woman in a white dress. Feeling her pregnant stomach. Holding his precious daughter the morning before he was turned.

He couldn't remember his human wife at all anymore. She was long dead anyway. He had found his life partner in Alice, but the infant child's face still came back to haunt him. He remembered visiting her grave 20 years after he changed. A simple country plot with no headstone, but he knew, he knew it was hers. The worst part?

He couldn't remember her name.

* * *

Clara sped through the forest, taking in everything around her. Running was by far her favorite thing about her second life, she felt so weightless. Laughing merrily, she picked up the pace, heading straight for the Canadian border. She had journeyed all over the south, she wanted to experience the north and the claimed frigid temperatures. A half second later, she came to a stop, then leapt in the air.

"I won! I won!" Two seconds later her companion appeared.

"That's because I went easy on you. I know how strong your competitive side is," she teased.

"That's not true and you know it, Mary," Clara scowled.

"Are you sure you want to go to Canada? Why not North Dakota where it's just as cold and empty but its still in the states?"

"What do you have against traveling outside of the country? And it's not like Canada will be that much of a culture shock," Clara inquired. She would never understand her companion of almost 150 years. In that entire time together, they had never left the country. Not once. Not that Clara had a desperate urge to leave, but it was puzzling all the same. They wouldn't have to deal with air travel or border security. They were much too fast for that. And they rarely played a major role in society to need any sort of documentation. The two nomads lived in the shadows. And that's how they liked it.

"In case you haven't noticed, we vampires aren't that big on change. You must be some sort of fluke," she jabbed.

"Okay, okay. Fine. I won't push it. But maybe… Alaska?" She asked, hopeful. "It's in the states but has the Canadian climate. Come on, you can't object to that!"

Mary sighed. "Alright, Alaska it is." Clara squealed in victory, clapping her hands together briefly. Her age protested against such childish gestures, but like Mary said, vampires detest change. "The loser catches lunch," she taunted. Before Mary could retort, Clara was off like a bullet. Mary spared only a beat to roll her eyes before chasing after her.

* * *

A flock of birds suddenly flew above Clara's head, startling her. They didn't see that much wildlife in Alaska, but she was in a forest of evergreens, enjoying the peaceful silence surrounding her. That was what featured in her sketchbook today, tall looming pine trees and fresh dew shimmering on the grass. Clara loved drawing, it was second only to running as far as her favorite activities went. Besides, one had to find a hobby in this life, or become frozen in time.

Clara brushed the lock of hair that had draped over her face back behind her ear. It was long, blonde with tints of brown, and wavy, something Mary was intensely jealous of, Clara thought with a smirk. Unfortunately, vampires cannot grow hair, so Mary was stuck with the small amounts she had when she was changed. Clara only knew a fraction of her story. She was only 14 when she turned, but that was hundreds of years ago. Her age certainly had matured her even though she was technically frozen at her youthful state.

Clara, on the other hand, had a bit of spirit left in her. She loved pulling pranks on her companion, but spaced them out every 10 years or so, so as not to suffer a cruel fate, she thought with a shudder. The two had gotten close over their 150 years together, but Mary never truly opened up to Clara, and still gave her a sense of danger whenever she was around. She shrugged, even though no one was there to see. Everyone has a past they'd like to forget.

She sighed as she made her final touches to a tree. The two would be moving again soon. They never stayed in one place for too long, it was too dangerous. Even though she had never met the Volturi, she shuddered at the thought of meeting them after being discovered by the humans. They had fed in Juneau in preparation for their journey. They were headed for Yakutat next, heading further inland. It was tricky finding habitable places to feed without going unnoticed, though. Being close to Juneau helped with the population issue, but technology was progressing so quickly that it was difficult to go unnoticed. They hoped a town with a population of around 600 would bridge the gap.

Clara gazed at her finished work. She would miss it here when they finally had to leave. Their stay in Alaska would be shorter than how long they normally stay in one place, simply due to the tiny population up north. She had to hand it to the humans who lived here, though. It couldn't have been easy living in a frozen wasteland, essentially.

Her ears perked up at the sound of grass and leaves crunching and quick footsteps heading her way. Mary. Clara stood to meet her, closing her book and putting it in the small rucksack she carried on her back. All of her worldly possessions were in that bag. Her sketchbook, an assortment of pens and pencils, a compass, and a very old picture she kept in her sketchbook. A photograph she snagged from her old house as a newborn. Her human family. She's incredibly glad she took it, because on the back of the picture, in cursive script was written, "Richard, Lucille, Frances, and Clara. 1863". Without it, she was sure she wouldn't have known their names. Her grandparents and mother. Now they were long gone.

"You're late. You said you'd be back before sundown. It's sundown," Mary spoke at the speed of light, but Clara caught every word.

"I was just leaving. I'm ready to go."

"Good."

Mary took off running, not waiting a second longer. Clara gazed at her trees one last time, getting a strange feeling of loneliness. Or was is homesickness? She puzzled over this for less than a second before chasing after her maker. Whatever it was, it could wait.

* * *

Alice was troubled. Her visions were acting strange lately, switching from one future to another, then another, and so on like a toddler playing with a light switch. Even more troubling was the fact that it happened so quickly she couldn't get a good look at what that future was, only change was involved in each one. They were driving her crazy.

"Carlisle, maybe moving to Forks wasn't such a good idea. My visions are only getting worse," Alice complained. The family were in the middle of building their new home, orchestrated by Esme and her magic architectural skills.

"Worse? How so?" Carlisle worriedly asked.

"Well, not worse per say, although they could be, it's just the future is so uncertain right now. I'm getting flashes of so many futures I can't keep track of them! It's never been this bad before," she murmured, rubbing her temples, though she knew it would prove futile.

"It's your choice, Alice. If things are too bad, then we can move somewhere else, if you wish."

Sighing, Alice shook her head. "No, it's alright. I know how difficult it is to find a place to blend in. And they aren't necessarily bad visions, they're just so many. Hopefully they will become clearer to me soon."

"I'm sure they will, darlin'," Jasper smoothly interjected, draping his arm over her shoulders. "Perhaps more shopping trips will help get your mind off of things?" he grinned.

Alice felt a smile make her way onto her face. Shopping. Her first love offered by her true love. What could be better? "You strike a nice deal there, mister," she smirked up at him.

"Since that's cleared up, I'm going to help the others with the house," Carlisle stated then sped off. Alice and Jasper walked leisurely that way as well, hand in hand, but Alice felt the smirk sliding down her face. There was one flash of her visions that she couldn't get out of her head. A blonde stranger buried in Jasper's arms, wide smiles on their faces as Jasper plants a soft kiss on her forehead. The blonde's eyes were red.


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: All characters of Stephanie Meyer are her own, I only own Clara and Mary.**

Chapter 2

Jasper gazed out the window. Things were tense in the Cullen household, and he struggled to supply calm, as he was bombarded by worry and anxiety left and right. The almost unbelievable had happened. Edward almost exposed them all. Thankfully he had the sense to leave town before something terrible happened. And here everyone was so worried about himself (although they had good reason to be worried. His restraint wasn't excellent). But ever since he left, Alice's visions had started acting up again, causing him another load of stress. There was something she wasn't telling him, he knew it. But he didn't push. He knew if she was hiding something from him regarding the future, there was good reason. But he couldn't help his curiosity.

He was about to go for a hunt to get away from all the negative emotions when suddenly, Alice's normal irritation and worry turned into abundant joy and excitement. It shocked him still. Not a second later, Alice was beside him, grasping his hand and looking into his eyes, her eyes wide with excitement.

"Alice, wha-," he tried to ask.

"Jasper! The future is becoming clear for me! And it's the most incredible future! Oh, I'm so happy!" she leapt into his arms, burying her head in his shoulder.

He let out a huge sigh of relief. "Well, that's great, darlin', is this something you can share with the rest of the class?" he asked with a smile on his face. Her elation was contagious.

"I'm sorry Jasper, but things need to take their natural course. Telling you would change the future," she solemnly added. "But I promise you won't have to wait long!" Incredible future? While Edward is away struggling with bloodlust? The timing seemed almost comical.

"Does Edward have something to do with this?" he carefully asked.

Alice thought for a moment, "Yes. This was the moment that solidified the future. That is, if things take their natural course," she added cautiously.

Jasper nodded. "So, what now?"

"Now?" she met his eyes. "Now we wait."

* * *

Clara thought she had seen some wonderous sights. Being immortal and virtually indestructible, she had seen things humans could only dream of seeing in person. Indescribable creatures at ocean depths still undiscovered by humans, mountain tops that were undisturbed before she christened their peaks, underground civilizations she discovered by accident. But nothing she had seen before compared to this. She had heard of the Aurora Borealis, otherwise known as the Northern Lights, but seeing them in person (with the enhancement of her vampiric vision) took her breath away. She could have stared at it for hours, watching it ebb and flow into a kaleidoscope of colors, but it came and went in a matter of minutes. Even Mary was entranced.

Most days, Clara was content with her life as a vampire. She often wanted for nothing, lived each day as a new adventure, and didn't have the obstacles humans faced when it came to taming the unforgiving earth. But some days she cursed her existence, longed for growth and change, wanted to crave something other than blood, and for that burning to cease for just one minute. It never did. She longed for someone to confide in, who confided in her in return. A lifetime companion. Mary she was grateful for, but their relationship was held at arm's length. They benefitted from each other for protection (should the need arise), companionship, and a sense of security, but that was the extent of their relationship. Clara learned long ago that their personalities clashed too much to truly consider themselves friends, something she mistook her bond to Mary as her creator for as friendship at one time. Unfortunately, she didn't see this reality changing anytime soon.

It had been a few years since the two had crossed Alaska's threshold, and Mary was getting antsy. She longed for her familiar southern climate and cowboy's blood. Clara was reluctant to let her frigid world go. It fit all too well that the two would be literal polar opposites as well as figurative. But she didn't have as strong of a will as Mary and wasn't ready to be on her own quite yet, so to the south she will return. She requested one last trip, however. A few months back, during one of her kills, the man had gasped something along the lines of "just like those Denali monsters" when he saw her. Needless to say, it caught her interest. Denali, Alaska was such a small place, you couldn't find it on a map. It seemed these "monsters" were the only residents. It was virtually uninhabitable for humans, so far away from any human civilization. If there were vampires here, they must be a coven, nomads didn't stay anywhere long enough to get a reputation. But a coven of vampires living in the middle of nowhere? They would have to travel hundreds of miles to feed to stay unnoticed. Either there was a gift involved, or there was more to the story. Clara wanted to know the story.

Mary was completely against the idea when Clara presented it to her, and it was understandable. Approaching a coven of vampires was dangerous, and the two knew nothing about them, nor their size. The coven could see them as a threat and attack, and the two would stand no chance. Neither had any special gifts or abilities that would aid them in battle. But Clara couldn't let it go. Mary found their situation odd as well, and reluctantly conceded to her companion's odd request.

The two were preparing for their journey, needing to feed one last time to have the strength to make it in one night. Mary looked over at Clara, the two watching a few drunken men stagger down the empty street, beers in hand.

"What do you think you'll find in Denali? So, what if it's a normal coven? Then, what?"

"I haven't thought that far ahead. Then, we leave, I guess. But something is telling me we aren't going to find normalcy in Denali."

Mary sighed. "What is normalcy for our kind, anyway?" she pondered, walking towards the men, her eyes already locked onto her target.

"That's true," Clara conceded, joining her. "If it's nothing, then we can just go, head directly south if you want."

"Oh, I want," she purred, reaching the man's face, already captivating his attention.

Clara turned her attention to the other two. "Now, which one of you do I want first?" she asked sweetly, each man tuned directly to the sound of her voice. Even Mary's target wavered when he heard her speak.

"Couldn't you have waited till I had this one?" Mary complained, leading her human away and gaining his attention back.

"You know I can't control it," she replied. The two other men were drooling now. "Gross," she commented, but spared not another moment to drain the first man dry, moving to the second before he could scream. Her trances usually lasted long enough so that wasn't a problem, however.

"I can't imagine what men would do if you _sang_," Mary remarked, rolling her eyes at the two bodies lying at her feet.

Clara draped them over her shoulder effortlessly. "Luckily we don't have to find out," she winked, then sped off into the woods with the remains of her meal to bury the evidence. A tedious but necessary job. She performed it faster than usual, though, eager to meet the people she thought of nonstop since she heard of them. Denali. She wondered what awaited her there.

* * *

The house was beautiful, she thought. Log cabin-esque, but a modern design. Plenty of windows. It almost made her chuckle. Creatures made of stone living in a house made of so much glass? As far as she knew, the coven was unaware of their presence. The two were lurking right at the tree line but were still a good distance away from the house. From their vantage point, they couldn't tell if the coven was home or not. They had been waiting for a sign of movement for over an hour now.

"What do you want to do, Clara? Approach or flee?" Mary asked, disturbed by the potential danger they were in. For all they knew, the coven was returning from dinner right now.

Clara shifted her weight, lightly nipping at her lip. "I… I think we should approach. Slowly. If we get close enough for them to catch our scent, we'll know for sure if they're home or not."

She wanted to offer her companion an option to stay behind but knew that wasn't possible for communication's sake. Because of Clara's gift, it was dangerous to talk to anyone, men especially. Since Mary was a girl, her influence had little effect on her, but she still tried to speak as little as possible and switched to sign language for lengthy conversations.

"Alright. I hope your instincts haven't led us to our deaths," Mary said forebodingly, making Clara's eyes roll.

Clara took the first tentative step outside of the brush, completely exposing herself. There seemed to be permanent cloud cover in Alaska, luckily, so she at least didn't shine like a beacon, potentially startling the coven. She heard Mary follow her a couple steps later, then her eyes finally caught movement from the house. A figure opened the front door and stepped outside the threshold, closing the door behind them. Clara instantly froze. She took in the stranger, noting that he was male and her kind by his scent. He was a few inches taller than her and had messy bronze-colored hair atop his head. But his most notable and startling feature were his honey-colored eyes. Clara's red ones widened at the sight. She was positive he had a vampire scent. There was certainly no blood coursing through his veins, no heartbeat. But his eyes were strange. Her curiosity grew tenfold.

He called out to her, "Hello, there. To what do we owe the pleasure of this visit? My name is Edward."

Mary took the remaining steps to meet Clara and responded in a light tone, "We mean you no harm. My name is Mary, and this is Clara. We are nomads, just passing through. We heard of rumors speaking of monsters in Denali and were curious as to the situation in which you lived. Clara in particular was curious," she added, accusatorily. Clara peeked at her from the corner of her eye and narrowed her eyes a fraction. She hadn't needed to add that bit at the end, she inwardly complained.

"Then by all means, we will answer your questions. There are five members of this coven, however I am not a member. I am simply a friend from another coven, though my coven and theirs share a bond of sorts. We refer to each other as 'cousins'," he explained as the door opened, letting the five coven members he was referring to outside. Seeing the six off them lined up across from the two of them set her instincts on high alert, but she tried to stay calm. Edward had seemed pleasant and welcoming enough, there was no sign of a threat. Yet.

"No need to fear," the only other male encouraged, "Come. We have nothing to hide," he finished, head tilted to one side staring intently at Clara.

Taking a breath, Clara began to approach the coven, Mary almost scrambling behind her. When she was a few feet away from them she nodded her head to each one in greeting, then signed to Mary, "Tell them I say hello and apologize for this method of communication. I would like to know why their eyes are gold."

Mary quickly translated to the confused faces of the vampires. It was certainly unheard of a vampire that used sign language to communicate, so their confusion was understandable, but Clara's lip still curled a fraction at the sight.

"I'm sorry," one of the women stated, "But can you not speak? My name is Tanya by the way. These are my sisters Kate and Irina, Carmen, and her mate Eleazar."

Mary was about to explain, Clara was sure, when to her surprise, the man, Eleazar, spoke up. "I believe it has something to do with her gift. Am I correct?" he directed to question toward Clara.

Confused, Clara nodded her head, wondering how on earth he could know that. As if she asked the question aloud, he answered, "My gift is seeing the gifts of others. And yours is quite fascinating, and dangerous should you decide to use it against us," he added, but with a slight smile on his face. He already trusted her not to use it, it seemed. This coven confused her more and more! "Allow me to explain to my coven. Our friend here has a certain power of persuasion. Her words subject those who hear it to a trance, in fact, the hearer is lured to the sound and loses their conscious mind, completely abandoning their self, and aligns themselves to her. Similar to the siren legends, I presume."

Clara nodded once more, amazed at his knowledge. She quickly tried to explain further so as to not lose the small amounts of trust she had built with this group, signing, "What he says is true, but the effects are far greater to humans than our kind, and mostly to males. Should I speak now, the women would be largely unaffected and the men almost in a sort of dream-like state, but should I speak longer the effects grow stronger." Mary translated this quickly as she signed.

"Thank you for sharing this with us," the woman named Carmen responded, smiling, "Perhaps to return this favor we should disclose the gifts among us?" she offered, speaking to her group.

Edward nodded. "I believe my gift will be the most disturbing to you so I feel I should go first. I have to ability to read the minds of others." Clara and Mary instantly took a subconscious step back, tensing up. He could read minds? Was he reading hers now? "Yes," he sighed, answering her unspoken question, "I can, but I cannot control it. The thoughts of those around me are as if they were spoken aloud; it can be difficult to distinguish between thoughts and spoken word."

"I am the only other one with a gift," a woman said. Kate, she remembered. "I can create an electrical impulse all over my body, shocking anyone who touches me. I can control it, however, and turn it on and off."

Mary was right to have been cautious at first, thought Clara, this coven _was_ dangerous. But, she assured herself, they have been nothing but open and honest with her so far, although they hadn't answered her question about their eye-.

"Our eyes are this way because of our diet," Edward spoke up, startling her out of her thoughts. He had been reading them again! "I'm sorry," he apologized sheepishly, "I told you I can't control it. But we don't survive on the blood of humans. Instead, we drink animal blood," he finished.

Clara and Mary but had disgusted looks on their faces. The blood of animals? That didn't sound appetizing in the slightest, she thought. "Why?" she signed, Mary voicing her question.

Eleazar answered. "Our conscience, morals, respect for humanity? We have all converted to this lifestyle out of respect towards humans. We are not so different from them, in fact, we were once them. Edward's coven leader, Carlisle, inspired us. His coven is entirely animal-drinkers as well, though mistakes do happen occasionally."

It was truly fascinating. She had a realization. "So, that is why you live so isolated? Because you do not rely on the human population to survive?" she signed.

They all nodded. "Yes," Tanya answered. "The farther away from humans we are, the better, so as to avoid mistake, as Eleazar put it. But we do occasionally need to utilize human services and travel to civilization every now and then. Maybe we aren't as good at acting human than we thought?" she wondered aloud.

Clara's mind was spinning. She never knew this way of life existed, and it was practiced by not one coven, but two! The thought of drinking animal blood disgusted her, but being able to spare human life? She tried not to think about the lives she was taking when she fed, their immediate alliance to her helping her cause, but as she let herself reflect on the hundreds, no, _thousands_ of lives she's taken over the years, the thought made her want to vomit. When had she become such a heartless creature? She thought she was content with her life, but at what cost?

"Show me," she signed, but Mary didn't voice it. Confused, Clara turned her head to look at her. Mary's face was contorted, showing a mixture of emotions, hurt, confusion, and possibly betrayal? "Tell them," she insisted.

Mary shook her head no. "Do you want to stay with them?" she signed back.

"I'm just curious," she defended, "I want to know how this life is possible."

"You want to stay. You want to join their coven," Mary argued.

"I just want to learn! Don't you? We no longer have to kill innocents to survive. People with a life, a family, a future! Can't you see?" Clara begged. Mary didn't answer.

Edward cleared his throat. "If you don't mind, would you like me to translate your request to my cousins?" Edward darted his eyes between the nomads, caution and worry etched into his face.

Clara looked at Mary's unchanging face once more, then nodded to Edward, offering him a smile in thanks, which he returned.

"Clara would like to know more about our lifestyle and would potentially like to adopt it as her own," he explained to the coven. They all smiled at her in response, some more enthusiastic than others, but encouraging just the same. "I do believe the two have a lot to talk about at the moment, perhaps we can give them some privacy for now? Clara, you can join us inside when you're finished. Of course, the offer is open to you, too, Mary," he quickly added, an awkward look on his face. He then winced slightly, which confused Clara for a moment before she realized he was probably hearing Mary's thoughts right now, and by the looks of it, they weren't pleasant. Then his eyes widened immensely as he stared at Mary. Clara didn't like being left out of the loop and turned to Mary, signing, "He's right, we need to talk," then turned to Edward thinking toward him, which sounded weird in her head, thank you, and if they could give them five minutes it would be greatly appreciated. He nodded, eyes still wide, but now staring at her, seeming to take in every feature of her face. It was a bit disturbing, but luckily, he responded to her request and the coven all went back inside the house, closing the door behind them.

Clara turned to Mary, tilting her head in the direction of the forest and sped off in that direction. She stopped when she was about a half mile into the tress, far enough away for sure to not affect the new vampires she just met, but before she could say a word Mary spoke up from behind her.

"There's something I've never told you, Clara," she started, looking down, "But I never knew how to explain. I didn't want to lie to you, but I didn't want to give you false hope, either. You see, I knew your father during the war."

Clara's eyebrows furrowed. What did her father have to do with this? And how would they know each other? It didn't make sense.

"He was changed by a vampire named Maria during the war. He was on his way to Galveston when he came across Maria and two other female vampires. They were fighting their own war, a war against vampires, and needed an army. Maria thought your father would be able to be a good commander of this army of newborns. So, he became her lacky, did everything she said or get brutally punished. After one year, a newborn was to be killed, since they couldn't be trusted to follow orders anymore. He did the killing. Eventually, Jasper discovered his gift, the ability to feel the emotions of others. He felt the fear and pain of every single one of his kills. It was driving him insane. One day, he helped a newborn and his mate escape Maria, then attempted his own escape. Maria caught him, however. She tried to kill him but, well, I was there. I fought her off and helped him escape. We joined the other two, Peter and Charlotte, later. On the way, he told me his story and I told him mine. I was just a nomad who showed up at the wrong place at the wrong time. Or the right place at the right time. But before we parted ways, he asked me to do him a favor. To check up on you, make sure you were doing alright. I agreed. I traveled back to Houston, but when I arrived, you weren't fine. You were sick. Hay fever it seemed. You were too far gone. During the night, I took you and changed you, hoping that maybe one day the two of you would be reunited. But I'm no tracker. I never found him again. But I have a feeling that Edward knows him. I was thinking about my promise to Jasper earlier and he had this look on his face. I can't explain it. You saw it, too, right?"

Clara nodded slowly. Her father… was alive? And Mary knew… and never told her? She was engulfed in feelings of hurt and confusion and betrayal… she couldn't fathom it.

"Why didn't you tell me? Why keep this a secret? All these years I thought… I thought everyone I loved was dead, but… why? Why, Mary?"

"Because you'd be hell-bent on the impossible task of finding him. How on Earth do you think you could've done that? I've been searching behind your back this whole time, in fact, I was starting to give up. Not a trace in 150 years? I thought he was dead. But I know he's not, now, and all we have to do is ask Edward about it. You could be reunited today!"

Reunited with her father. _Today_. It seemed too good to be true. But there was one more thing to talk about. "If we can find him today, that would be the greatest gift I'd ever received. But what about this animal diet? What do you feel about it?"

"I think this is your calling, not mine," Mary replied. "Perhaps this is where our paths split. You're far too spunky for me, anyway," she added, the corner of her lip twitching. "And if your father is in Edward's coven, then naturally you will become a member as well, and converted to this diet. I prefer the nomadic life."

"Mary," she stated simply, putting all her emotion she felt in that moment in the word. Everything she experienced in this new life was with her, everything she knew Mary taught her. Mary created her. She never thought this day would come. But at the same time, she had overwhelming excitement for this new chapter of her life. Seeing her father again, after all this time! The hope and sadness she felt over this new situation battled for dominance. She stepped forward and hugged her friend, startling her, but didn't care. What she couldn't say in words, she said in this gesture. "Thank you," she whispered into her hair.

"You're welcome, Clara," She responded, resting one hand lightly on Clara's back. The two stepped back from each other, nodded, then disappeared, each headed in a different direction. The leaves they stirred up drifted leisurely back down to their resting place, resuming the peace and tranquility the forest provided, unaware of the changing world around them.

* * *

**A/N: Please leave a review! Thank you all for reading my story!**


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Edward had his phone to his ear, brow furrowed. Surely, Alice saw this. He paced the floor worriedly as he waited for her to answer. If she knew this would happen, why didn't she say anything? Finally, she picked up on the third ring.

"Alice," he spoke tensely, not waiting for her greeting.

"Hello, Edward," she answered with a lighter tone, but there was an undertone in her voice, he recognized it as the, "don't say too much because of the future," tone.

"Anything you want to tell me?" he asked, eyes narrowing. Even if it was to conserve the future, he was still annoyed he had no warning.

"I'm sorry. You know it had to be this way," she apologized, "I'm figuring out how to get us out of school now."

"How soon? She needs time to-," he started to say "control her gift" but was cut off by Alice.

"Soon enough, Edward, I miss you, too, bye!" she hurriedly finished, ending the call. Edward drew the phone away from his ear, dearly missing the inside knowledge he received by reading his family's minds. Being out of the loop was a rare and annoying occasion. He met the eyes of his cousins, not needing to relay information because they had heard it all, but still felt the need to add,

"Sorry about Alice, she can be allusive like that far too often," he shrugged, then took a seat next to Irina on the sofa.

"That's alright, Edward," Eleazar replied, "We aren't used to knowing things beforehand anyway," he supplied with a smile.

"But there does seem to be something going on that you know, and we don't," Kate accused, eyebrow raised. "Who is she? Do you know her?"

Edward shook his head, peeking out the window to make sure she wasn't around to hear, then looked at the coven intently, "I thought I recognized something about her when she approached, but I know I've never met her before. It wasn't until her companion, Mary, started thinking about Clara's past and mentioned someone we all know well, Jasper. I believe Clara is Jasper's daughter from his human life," he finished, watching their eyes grow wide.

"That's incredible," Tanya breathed out, speaking for the entire coven. Their thoughts all reflected this astonishment, but Edward picked up on one of Carmen's thoughts: _How will Jasper react?_

"I don't know, Carmen, that's what I'm worried about," he answered her unspoken question. "He surely won't recognize her, since I believe he was changed when she was an infant, and now she appears the same age as him," he worried.

"That's why Alice was acting so secretive, I assume," Kate offered, "She's treading carefully, knowing Jasper, he'd think that was some sort of trick or associate Maria with it."

"If only she could speak for herself," Carmen shook her head, "Of course you could translate, Edward, but there's something about hearing it from the mouth of the speaker that certainly would help."

"We need to help her control her gift," Edward realized, "and Kate is the perfect one for the job," he looked at Kate's wide and confused eyes.

"Why me? Our gifts are completely different," she argued.

"I know, but you're the only one who can. Without hearing her speak, we can't know if she's in control or not, and women are apparently less affected by her speech than men. We could have Eleazar or I as guinea pigs, if you don't object, of course," he directed at Eleazar.

"I would certainly be willing to assist and am genuinely curious as to the extent of her gift," he reassured.

It was then that Edward heard her drawing nearer by her thoughts, and quickly heard her footfalls after, the rest of the coven perking up.

"It's only Clara," Edward said, "I don't hear Mary."

A second later, a knock was heard at the door, and Eleazar swiftly rose to answer it, Clara stepping in with some trepidation at the unknown.

"Don't worry, child," Eleazar soothed her, "You're among friends," he smiled. She returned the gesture but was still tense. She'd probably never been on her own before, Edward thought.

She looked around the room, taking in the faces that greeted her, but lingered slightly on Edward's face. Seeing her in the light and out of the elements he really got a chance to take in her appearance. Long, blonde hair that reached her waist and seemed to give off its own glow, round eyes, a diamond-shaped face, and full lips. She was long and lean, seemed comfortable in her body. Every move she made seemed natural, almost premeditated.

Too soon, her eyes pulled away from his and settled on Eleazar, giving him a small smile. She started to sign, but then realized that her translator wasn't with her and turned to Edward, silent question in her eyes.

"I'll tell them anything you want to say," he offered kindly.

She nodded her head at him in thanks and thought, "Tell them Mary and I have decided to go our separate ways. I would like to learn about this alternative diet you all practice."

He relayed the message to the group and Eleazar responded, "We'd be more than happy to teach you," then looking around the room and making eye contact with Edward in particular, who nodded to voice his thoughts, "in fact, we'd be willing to help you control your gift, should you so desire," he offered.

"What does he mean by control?" Clara thought to Edward.

"She wants to know what control means," he relayed.

"Would you like to explain, Kate?" Eleazar suggested.

"Sure," she responded, "At first the current was just in my palms, but eventually I learned to radiate it throughout my whole body. We can help you learn to control your gift as well, as much as possible."

"I'd- that would be wonderful," she thought, amazed look on her face. Edward smiled at the sight, then nodded to the group. He found himself not thinking about, or more accurately, not brooding in his own woes about his almost lack of control with Bella ever since Clara arrived. He more than welcomed the distraction.

Clara thought better than to mention her father with the Denali coven (& Edward) when she returned without Mary and made sure to not even let the thought cross her mind with Edward around. It was exhausting trying to shield her own thoughts, but she managed. At first, she wanted to know anything and everything about him and when she would be able to see him, but the more she thought about it, the more nervous she became. The two would be practically the same age now, and did he even remember her, let alone want to get to know her? And if he was practicing the animal diet, how would he react when he saw her red eyes? Or couldn't hear her voice? There were too many problems, too much unknown. In the back of her mind, she knew everything would turn out okay, but she couldn't move past her worries yet. One step at a time. She had to eat a deer.

Eleazar and Carmen volunteered to take her out for her first hunt, though she could tell by their faces that the others wanted to come, too, but respected her desire for as small of an audience as possible. She had never hunted animals before and was sure to make a fool out of herself on the first try.

"Hunting animals is different than hunting humans," Eleazar began, "You can't lure them to you like you can humans, and every animal is different in how they will react to you. Some will flee, some will attack. No matter what they choose, of course, you are still much faster and stronger than they are and feeding off of them shouldn't be a problem."

"Unless you're turned off by the taste," Carmen teasingly added, a smirk on her face.

Eleazar shook his head, amused, "Yes, the taste is different, but all of us have managed it and it's just a part of our lives now."

"Some of us find the hunt to be more enjoyable with animals than humans," Carmen pointed out, "Whereas drinking from humans requires little to no effort, hunting animals is different. You'll see," she smiled at Clara.

"Trust your instincts," Eleazar encouraged, "They know what to do." And with that, the two sped off into the forest, Clara right on their heels. She could have sworn she felt someone watching her right before she followed the two vampires, but shook it off, focusing on the hunt.

There was something to be said about the beauty of this form on hunting, Clara noted. Seeing the brilliant colors of the forest flash by as she ran was remarkable. If she fed this way, these sights would become a part of her life, something she realized gaily. She was so lost in the surrounding sights, sounds, and smells that she almost forgot what she was here for, until she caught whiff of an animalistic scent. In a word, it smelled… dirty. A lifetime in the wild assured that fact. She almost couldn't fathom putting her mouth on the creature but decided to trust her instincts like Eleazar said. Thinking of him, she glanced around, focusing her hearing, but couldn't find the two in her radius. They must have found their own meals, she pondered.

Turning back to her animal, she walked closer to where the smell was coming from, steadily falling into a crouch the closer she got, careful to not step on any twigs that could alert it of her presence. A deer, like she feared she would have to eat today, was grazing on a small patch of grass, every so often looking around for any danger. It was male, and fairly large, Clara noticed. She was almost sad for the buck, as his efforts to stay unnoticed were failing. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to be immersed in the hunt, taking in the scent of his blood, the heart pumping, the veins in his neck that were so close to her, so inviting. Venom pooled in her mouth and her eyes darkened, as she agilely crept closer to the buck, hidden in the brush, until she was close enough.

She dug her feet into the ground and without thinking, sprang forward and latched onto the deer's neck before it had time to move a muscle. She drank swiftly, hardly noticing the taste of the blood, purely focused on the nourishment it provided her. After the animal was drained, she let it fall at her feet, slowly coming back to herself. She noticed the taste then, cringing slightly as it wasn't the sweet nectar she was used to, but at least had the same effect as human blood. She felt faster, stronger, the ache in her throat dimming slightly. She felt a smile tug at the corners of her mouth. She did it. She drank from her first animal. Looking back down at the buck, she inwardly promised to never eat from a human again.

"How did it go?" Edward asked as soon as they returned. He couldn't seem to make himself busy as soon as their thoughts went out of his hearing range, instead made his cousins crazy with his pacing and sitting down then standing back up again until they went to their own rooms to escape his anxiousness. Perhaps it was pure curiosity, he wanted to get to know her, compare her thoughts and Jasper's and see how they are similar and different. Their looks should be enough to confirm their relationship, they had the same features and hair color, both had wavy hair, they were even roughly the same size and stature. She was really just the feminine version of Jasper; he was astonished he didn't notice right away.

"Good!" she thought and signed to him, nodding her head excitedly. She didn't have a drop of blood on her, he realized, astonished. Normally the first few hunts were messy, but he supposed she had been a vampire for long enough to know how to stay clean while eating.

"She performed very well," Eleazar confirmed, "We actually left her alone to hunt, allowing her to rely fully on her instincts. It proved successful. She took down a buck and two elk."

Edward was slightly bothered by the fact that they left her alone so soon into her hunt, but he knew that the possibilities of humans in the surrounding woods were slim to none, and Eleazar and Carmen wouldn't leave her if they didn't trust her.

"We believe it's time to start working on controlling her gift. Kate?" Carmen asked at her speaking tone, Kate instantly appearing at her side. "Thank you," she smiled at Kate.

"Certainly," Kate responded, "Are you ready?" she asked Clara.

Clara nodded, her thoughts drifting to a mixture of anxiousness and excitement. She started worrying about her gift and the effect it'll have when she uses it, even mentioning Edward's name in her thoughts, which he picked up instantly and whipped his head towards her to meet her eyes. She was worried about _him_. He was equally intrigued by the notion that she cared enough to worry about him and worried himself at the strength and effect of her gift. How would he react? What would he do? Still, he was more than willing to help her learn to control it. Above all, he wanted to hear her voice.

"Edward? Do you mind?" Kate asked, head tilted in his direction.

"Not at all," he recovered, snapping out of his reverie and rejoining the conversation. Clara had her lips pinched together, obviously more worried now about this experiment. Edward reached out a hand to her, placing it on her shoulder. "It's okay," he consoled her, "We'll figure it out," he smiled.

Clara seemed to relax slightly, thanking him in her thoughts, "Thank you, Edward," offering a smile of her own, "It's just that I don't know how strong the effects are or how long they will last. I've only ever spoken to humans or Mary before, and with humans, I didn't wait for the effects to wear off," she explained, a bit forlornly at the end, her thoughts drifting to all the times she used her ability to lure men to her before she attacked.

Edward cleared his throat, shaking his head to clear thoughts of bloodlust from his mind. Clara seemed to realize where her thoughts were headed and looked instantly remorseful. Edward looked at her, making sure she knew she was forgiven, giving her a nod and a small smile, then relayed the information to the group.

"You spoke with your companion, though?" Tanya spoke up. At Clara's nod, she continued, "Did she ever show any affects from your gift?"

Clara shook her head. "We never spoke for long periods of time and when we did, I switched to sign language as a precaution," she thought, Edward translating.

"Alright, well, we won't have you do too much talking today, just in case," Kate said, giving her a wink. Clara's eyebrows raised slightly before she could catch herself, then had a look on her face that would've had a blush all over it if she still could. Edward thought it was very cute, before catching himself and furrowing his eyebrows. He's known the girl for less than 24 hours and already he's developing a crush? Perhaps the century of loneliness was catching up to him, he thought. Snapping himself out of his thoughts, he followed the women that were already making it outside. Why they needed to do this outside, he didn't know, but the breathing room was a nice change.

"When you speak, do you notice your gift? Do you have any sense of its strength, where it's going, and sort of control like that?" Kate began.

Clara thought for a minute, then thought "aloud" to Edward, "I don't know. I don't have anything to compare it to, I suppose," she shrugged. Edward relayed her response, then Kate continued,

"Well, I'm going to have you speak a bit and really think about what you feel. Does it have a shape? A color? Is it reaching out like tendrils or washing over like fog? Just start by saying 'hello'," she finished. Edward heard Carmen take Eleazar out hunting, but Tanya and Irina were peeking curiously out the windows, longing to hear her voice and see its power, no doubt. Edward was just as curious and growing ever more anxious as the time was now. Clara nodded and braced herself, a worried look on her face, carefully avoiding Edward's gaze. He picked up a stray thought of Clara's that if she didn't look at him, perhaps the affects would be lessened, but even she didn't believe that truly.

Slowly and carefully, Clara opened her mouth, inhaled, and spoke clearly,

"Hello."

The effect was instantaneous. Everything around him seemed… vague, dim, almost. The only clear thing he could see was her. She was glowing, shining, and he couldn't look away. In the back of his mind he knew where he was and what was going on, but the temptation to lose himself and run straight to her was almost too strong. She met his eyes and he felt himself take a step towards her before he could stop himself. In the distance, another voice was saying something, but he didn't want to listen. All he wanted was to hear her voice again. The other voice grew louder, stronger, until he couldn't ignore it anymore.

"Edward, Edward! Look at me. Listen to my voice. Edward?"

He blinked, dazed and confused as the world came back to reality. It was Kate, he realized, who was speaking to him. Another voice was almost shouting in his head that grew in volume as he became aware of its presence.

"I'm so sorry, Edward! Please forgive me. I feel absolutely terrible. Oh, I can't express how truly sorry-," Clara begged, a look of absolute sorrow on her face.

"It's okay, Clara," he consoled her, "There's nothing to forgive. It wasn't your fault. We knew this would happen," he gave her a small smile.

"What was it like, Edward?" Kate asked, "Do you remember?"

"It was like a dream, like she said," he explained, brow furrowing, "Everything became unclear, unfocused, except Clara. She was like… all I wanted. Her voice is… It's hard to explain," he finished, lamely.

He almost said _beautiful_, but held his tongue. That thought, unlike the ones he had while in the trance, was purely his own. She had only said one word, but it was that most gorgeous sound he'd ever heard. He even caught the slight southern twang in her voice, to his delight. Even knowing the consequences, he couldn't wait to hear her speak again.

"Did you feel anything, Clara? Did you feel you controlling him at all?" Kate prompted Clara. At her negative shake of the head, she nodded, "Okay, then let's try again, only a longer phrase this time. How about, 'What a beautiful day it is today'," she nodded to Clara again prompting her to speak.

Clara met Edward's eyes, apologizing to him again, then speaking, "What a beautiful day it is today."

The same thing happened as before, but this time Edward was prepared. He felt the dream state close in around him but fought to stay in reality. Her voice _was_ truly beautiful, he thought. As was she.

Edward wavered on his feet slightly, but came back to reality quicker this time, to Clara's pleasure. She gave him a full grin as his eyes cleared, never leaving hers, that he couldn't help but returning.

"Alright, try that again, only really think hard about not controlling him at all. Try to reign in your power," Kate suggested, "If you can remember what it felt like to talk as human, try to mirror that."

Clara nodded, then looked at Edward again, seeming to not want to look away. He inwardly hoped she felt the same way towards him as he did towards her. She took on a look of concentration as she repeated,

"What a beautiful day it is today."

You could tell she was trying to restrain herself, some of the words weren't as clear, but its effect remained constant. Edward was once again drawn into the dream state, where he fought the urge to throw himself into her arms and never leave, which he was sure to become more difficult the more he grows closer to her, he realized, but came out of it after a few minutes.

Clara shook her head, looking at the ground, pitiful look on her face. "It's alright, Clara," Kate reassured, "This is only our first time. This could take weeks, months, even years to master. Though I'm sure you don't want that," she finished, taking in Clara dejected face. "Perhaps this is enough for one day," she decided, placing her hand on Clara's shoulder and walking back to the house. Edward sighed. He was falling in love with her, and fast, but he was finding that he didn't want to stop it as he took in her kind eyes and relaxed smile. He wondered what all Alice had seen in the near future, and perhaps not all of it was about the two Whitlock's meeting each other again.


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry it's been a few days since the last update. I've been struggling with where I want this story to go, so I've been putting off updating for a bit. Anyway, enjoy this short chapter! I'll have another one posted tomorrow, I promise! ;)**

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Clara found her way into the forest, needing some time by herself. She quickly whittled herself a makeshift flute and filled the surrounding air with tunes she learned over her years of travel. After those were exhausted, she started making up her own songs, beginning with a playful waltz, then a stately march, which blended into a lyrical ballad. She let the notes linger, each one not wanting to give up its place in the song. It was heartbreakingly beautiful. She would have cried if she could. Her song was one of loneliness and homelessness. She yearned for a place, a home, a family. For vampires this was very strange, she knew, but she couldn't deny her feelings. This yearning started long before her change.

* * *

It was March. The air was crisp, but that didn't stop Clara from embarking in her morning chores. She fed the cows and chickens, brushed the horses and cleaned the pens. The work was laborious, but she was the only one who could do them. Grandmother and Grandfather were too old, and she had no male siblings to take the responsibility. But Clara didn't mind. She found the most peace in the company of the animals, and after she was finished, she got to take her long morning walk through the countryside.

Clara was used to being alone. Her parents were both dead, and Johnathan enlisted months ago, long after the war was over, but still affected by the desire to serve. He visited occasionally, but mostly she was left to her thoughts. He was doing good work, though, she thought. Repairing the damage that the war had wrought would take decades, she presumed, maybe more.

She brushed her hand along the tops of wheat stalks as the breeze braided itself in her hair. The early morning was the only time she could let her hair down, and she took full advantage of it. A flock of birds flying in a "V" shape flew over her head, Clara shielding her head with her arms so as not to get bird droppings in her hair. She quickened her pace to a run, laughing with joy as she frolicked away. She was having too much fun to notice the dark clouds rolling in. A crash of thunder alerted her of its presence, her head shooting up from her comfortable position on her back. Her eyes widened, taking in the ominous storm clouds passing over her, and she leapt to her feet, sprinting in the direction of home. She was a runner, but still not fast enough to outrun the storm.

She was drenched from head to toe as she stumbled inside the house, shaking like a leaf in the wind. A loud crash of thunder echoed throughout the house, making her jump. She headed off toward the bath, coughing as she stumbled up the stairs.

"Good lord, child, what on earth has become of you?" her grandmother gasped as she took in her appearance.

Clara coughed a few more times before replying, "Nothing, Grandmother, I was just enjoying the morning air after I fed the chickens," she finished before sneezing.

"Well, it looks as if the enjoyment is long over," she remarked, worry etched on her face, "Have Laura draw you a bath," she waved her on.

"I heard her come in, Ma'am," Laura answered, emerging from Clara's chambers. Clara could hear the bath water running. "Now, dear, let's get you out of them wet clothes," she beckoned Clara to come inside the room, Clara sneezing several more times along the way. "Careful, now, or we might think you came down with the Hay Fever," Laura jokingly said, but glanced behind her at Clara's grandmother with a look of concern before closing the door behind her.

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Clara's song was still echoing through the trees when she heard a rustling nearby. Putting down her flute, she gazed curiously at the newcomer, relaxing when she saw it was Edward.

"I heard music," he shrugged, an almost embarrassed look on his face. He sat down on the ground a few feet away from her, his back against a tree.

Clara smiled, and thought, "It was too quiet. The music helps me think sometimes."

Edward nodded, "I am a music lover myself. I play piano," he smirked at the homemade instrument, "but I don't have the tendency to make them myself."

"Oh, this is nothing," she thought, embarrassed, "I'm not a craftsperson by any means."

Edward laughed, "It plays beautifully. You should be proud of yourself," he smiled, meeting her eyes. She felt herself getting lost in those eyes, looking away awkwardly. She battled with her thoughts, catching herself thinking of his handsome appearance and kind demeanor, then shaking herself at her childish antics. He truly was handsome though, and when he smiled, it made her feel… She jumped as she instantly remembered who she was with, a mind reader! If she could blush, her entire face and neck would be a beacon, she thought, wide eyes meeting his amused ones. He chuckled a bit, then shook his head, gazing at her,

"Don't worry, my thoughts have been similar lately. About you," he shyly stated, reaching out a hand to place it lightly on top of hers, then took it away before she could react. Clara's lips parted at the action, looking at the hand he held a second ago, then met his eyes. She felt her lips pull up at the edges, almost feeling, whatever that strange saying was, _butterflies_ in her stomach? Whatever it was, she hadn't felt it in this lifetime at least.

"You play?" she thought, guiding them back to their previous conversation.

"Yes," he confirmed, "My mother from my human life made sure I took lessons as soon as I could; she adored hearing me play," he recalled with a sad smile on his face.

"I'm sorry," she consoled him, sad to have brought up painful memories, but he shook it off.

"Don't be, it's long in the past. The early 20th century, in fact. I was changed when I was 17, in Chicago of 1918. Carlisle, my creator, found me dying of Spanish Influenza and turned me. My family perished from the disease," he recounted for her.

"That's tragic," she thought, "I had Hay Fever, so I understand what dying of illness is like."

"I'm sorry you had to endure that," he apologized.

"Thank you, but like you said, it's ancient history now," she gave him a small smile, "Luckily, I didn't have many people in my human life that cared about me, so it was easy to let it go. I was raised by my grandparents. My mother died of pneumonia a few months after I was born, and my father died in the war. The farm animals were my only company," she chuckled, trying not to think about what Mary told her. She wanted to know if he would tell her about her father outright, but kept her intentions hidden. Meeting his eyes, she couldn't tell if she was successful or not.

After a few minutes, Edward staring at the ground and Clara glancing at him, waiting for him to say something, he finally looked up and asked, "What year were you born?" then snapped his mouth shut.

"1863," she thought, wondering where he was going with this.

Edward nodded, looked deep in thought for a while, then opened his mouth to say something, before closing it again.

Sighing, Clara asked him mentally, "Can I ask you something?"

Edward's lip twitched, "You just did."

"Ha-ha," she sarcastically remarked, watching his smile grow, "Where is your coven, and why aren't you with them?"

"That's two 'somethings'," he pointed out, temporarily leaving her question hanging. When she didn't reply, he sighed, "My coven is in Forks, Washington right now. We like to stay in one place as long as we can, blending in with the humans to the best of our ability. My father, Carlisle, is a doctor, so he works at the hospital, my mother, Esme, does charity work. The rest of us attend high school. When the humans start to notice our lack of aging, we move, rinse and repeat."

Clara was amazed. They lived with humans? Without drinking their blood? And their leader worked in a hospital! It was remarkable and seemed confusing to her. She didn't understand the logic behind it.

"We try to stay in touch with our humanity as much as possible. And, it turns out living with humans is easier than avoiding them, once you get the thirst under control," he answered her unspoken questions. "As for why I'm here… there's a new student at Forks High School and her blood is… extremely tempting to me. I came here to get away, try to regain my composure. I very nearly killed her," he confessed, looking down, "But I can't stay here much longer. It'll look too suspicious. Right now, the lie is that I've caught a stomach bug, but it's been 5 days now. I'll have to go back."

"Oh," Clara stated simply, not knowing what else to "say". The thought of Edward leaving soon was troubling. Whenever he was near, it was like she was at peace. And she didn't need to use her voice to communicate with him; everything was just easier with him. She knew he could hear her thoughts, but she didn't care anymore. The fact that she didn't have to piece them together in an articulate way for him to understand what she was feeling was freeing. Edward put his hand on hers, a look in his eyes she couldn't quite read. Before she could say (or think, for that matter) anything, he was already talking.

"If you'd like, you can come with me. I know you've just met a new coven for the first time and my coven is larger, so I understand if that's too intimidating for you, but there's someone in my coven I'd like you to meet. I have a feeling that you two know each other," he said, carefully.

Clara's eyebrows raised. Thinking carefully, she thought to him, "I wouldn't be a burden to you? We've just met, after all. And I'm not sure about my ability to blend in with the humans…" she trailed off, looking away. Edward turned her face back toward him, using one finger on her chin.

"We wouldn't ask you to go out in public so soon, so don't worry about that. And you certainly would not be a burden to anyone, especially me. Trust me, I'm sure they're all dying to meet you," he grinned, hand still holding hers, which he gave a slight squeeze.

Taking a deep breath, she nodded, smiling widely back at him. Being wanted, cared for, it was all so new, and she loved it. Clara hoped desperately that she wouldn't ruin it.


	6. Chapter 5

**A/N: HUGE thank you to all those who have left reviews for my story! Whenever I get that notification I leap for joy... okay, maybe not, but a lot of smiling is involved :)**

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Clara and Edward said their goodbyes to the Denali coven, Clara going as far as hugging most of the members. Irina still seemed indifferent to her, so she didn't want to push anything. She thoroughly thanked them, through Edward, for their hospitality and guidance into this new lifestyle. She was nervous about meeting Edward's coven and being near humans so soon after switching diets, but she trusted Edward at least to help her make as few mistakes as possible.

Clara shifted her rucksack on her back, taking one last look at the Alaskan home before taking Edward's hand and disappearing into the night.

It was torture trying to shield her thoughts from Edward, or constantly try to think of trivial things, such as the landscape or reliving moments from her past with perfect clarity. She truly wanted to think about meeting her father for the first time, what to say to him, how to react, etc., but didn't let herself dwell on it. Those thoughts would go around in circles, anyway. She saw Edward glance her way every now and then, but she wasn't sure if it was because she had let something slip or something completely unrelated. She longed for the trip to be over quickly, or else she was sure her anxieties would bubble over before they got there.

About an hour later, Edward pulled her to a stop, startling her. "We're about 30 minutes away from Forks," he said. "It would be quicker, but I don't want to take any chances by having you too close to civilized areas. Just follow me."

"I already was," she replied, trying to force a relaxed smile on her face. She wasn't sure if she was selling it or not, but it must've been enough as he nodded and the two took off again.

Before long, she could pick up the scent of vampires, so many of them. There had to have been 5, maybe 6. Her nomadic instincts make her go stiff with tension. Edward placed a hand on her arm, seeing her rigid posture and wide eyes.

"Clara? It's okay, no one will hurt you. You're safe here," he comforted her in a calm voice.

She took a few breaths before meeting his eyes, fighting her instincts and trusting him. It was even more difficult to control what she was thinking now. They were so _close_. _He_ was so close. Not giving Edward time to react to that thought, Clara took his hand and thought,

"I'm ready to meet them."

Edward nodded, staring into her eyes, contemplating something. She prayed that he would just let it go and they could go in. He blinked, then started for the house, Clara in tow. She released a sigh of relief, that was quickly replaced by anxiety again. After a second, they were in front of the door. Before Edward opened it, he muttered to her in a low voice,

"If it makes you feel better, I'm not quite ready to be here, either," he squeezed her hand, then opened the door.

Clara didn't allow herself to take in the house from the outside but put her nervousness aside for a moment to observe with awe the inside of the house. It was almost futuristic. There were so many windows, which made the house feel like they were still outdoors when they were inside. The rooms were spacious, and the walls and furniture were white or other light colors. It looked very human, from her perspective, like they were truly a family. Sitting on the furniture was the family themselves she noticed, holding her breath. Now, she and Edward were standing, hands still laced together, somewhere between the doorway and the living room, with all eyes on her. One of the coven members, a girl with dark, spiky hair, rushed up to Edward and enveloped him in a hug, forcing him to release his grip on her hand. She crossed them behind her back as the pixie exclaimed,

"Edward! We've missed you so much!" she released him, giving him a radiating smile, then turned to Clara and giving her the same treatment. At first, she was terrified of this stranger wrapping their arms around her, but loosened up a bit when Edward murmured cautiously,

"Alice."

"It's alright, Edward," Alice replied lightly, releasing her grip on Clara, "Don't be afraid, dear, we all knew you were coming and have been waiting patiently for your arrival," she clairvoyantly stated.

Clara furrowed her brows, then looked at Edward, wondering if he told them she was coming. Edward shook his head, then tilted his head toward the short girl,

"Alice has visions of the future. She saw you coming," he put simply.

A throat being cleared caught her attention. "Of course!" Alice exclaimed, "Let me introduce you," she skipped back over to the rest of the coven.

"Shouldn't I be doing the introducing, Alice?" Edward asked, an annoyed undertone in his voice.

"Well, I just feel like I know her so well by now… of course, you can do the honors, Edward," she conceded, much to his evident surprise, sliding into her previous seat next to a stiff-backed man that immediately caught Clara's attention. Her eyes grew as wide as saucers. Somehow, she knew this was him. This was her father. She doesn't have any memory of his face or any photographs; she was sure there had been some, but after her change she lost all memory of his appearance. But looking at him was like looking in the mirror. The resemblance was uncanny. In the back of her mind, she heard Edward saying names as he pointed to people, trying to get her attention, but she just stood and stared at the man until he got to his name, which she mouthed along with him,

"Jasper."

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" Jasper asked, likely seeing the resemblance himself. Hearing his confusion and lack of knowledge of her hurt her, more than she was prepared for. But it was understandable. He'd never seen her before, probably thought she was dead. Before she could come up with a decent response, Edward announced,

"Everyone, this is Clara. Clara Whitlock."

The only one without a look of shock on their face was Alice, who Clara was sure knew exactly who she was, but no more than Jasper. Slowly, like molasses, he stood up, walked over to her until he was standing a foot away from her. As he approached, Clara noticed the scars. She couldn't help the shudder that ran through her. The scars screamed _danger_, but she knew he couldn't be. He was her father! Her breath was uneven when he stopped in front of her, mouth agape. He was obviously having trouble forming his thoughts into words, she realized, and understandably so. She didn't have words, either. So, just as slowly and carefully as he had approached her, she closed the distance between them, snaking her arms around his waist and tucking her head under his chin. After a moment, he shakily wrapped his arms around her in return, and laid his head on hers. In that moment, she felt joy, peace, and happiness. She had a family after all. The wide smile that fitted itself on her face seemed to appear on its own accord. She looked up and met his eyes, seeing a look of absolute love and wonder in them. Unable to speak, she mouthed the word,

"Daddy."

His lips met her forehead in the gentlest touch she'd ever received. This was heaven, she thought. Somehow, she made it to heaven.

* * *

It could have been minutes or hours, but before she was ready, Clara felt Jasper pull away, but didn't let go of her completely, to her relief. Jasper had a huge smile on his face, looking her up and down, almost making sure she was real in front of him. She returned the smile, holding his forearms as they were the only part of him she could reach.

"How are you here? Where have you been? What happened? I'm-I'm sorry I wasn't there for you, I had no idea…," he trailed off, ending his rambling of questions. She looked at Edward, pinching her lips and eyebrows together. He nodded at her, understanding her dilemma, and continued,

"There's something else. Clara has a gift." At that, everyone perked up, Jasper whipping his head between the two. "It unfortunately affects her speech. So, unless all the men in the room want to fall into a trance and forget themselves, she won't be speaking," he explained, Clara rolling her eyes at his offhand way of putting it. Jasper furrowed his brows, eyes focused on her, but directed his question at Edward,

"Are you saying we'll never be able to hear her speak?" pain etched in his voice.

"I'm afraid not, Jasper," Edward regretfully replied, "Not until we figure out how to control it. We tried in Denali. Kate helped her and I was the test dummy. Her powers are real, and strong. I've only heard her speak a few sentences. After one word, I was completely in a trance. It's hard to practice her control, though, without test subjects."

"I'll gladly help her," Jasper immediately volunteered, "You heard her voice and survived, so that's good enough for me."

Edward sighed, shaking his head, "You don't know what this experience is like, Jasper, and it would be even stranger for you to undergo it as her father. If you've heard of the siren legends, that's as close as I can describe this. You essentially fall in love with her, albeit artificially, when you hear her voice. That's still not an adequate way to describe it," he huffed, running his hands through his hair. Clara placed a hand on his shoulder, a saddened look on her face. She was growing to resent her gift and its interference in her life. All she wanted was to talk to her loved ones, she wanted them to hear her voice, she wanted to say her own thoughts. Her gift seemed impossible to control, to top it off. Kate tried, but gained no ground in the gift controlling process. She had said it could take years, though, she thought solemnly.

Edward cupped her cheek, meeting her eyes, "We _will_ control this, Clara. Don't give up yet."

Clara nodded, leaning into his touch. Edward had a way of calming her like she hadn't experienced before. She opened her eyes to meet the staring ones surrounding her. She felt a bit self-conscious, and wanted to hide in Edward's embrace, but also put some distance between them, feeling perhaps they were too close in their eyes. Edward chuckled, pressed a light kiss to her temple, making her breath catch, then turned to the group,

"Clara's feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment, perhaps we could give her some space for now," he suggested. Who 'we' was, Clara didn't know, but she certainly didn't want to be alone. She was torn between being with Edward and Jasper, but didn't want to be with both, as that could get awkward really quick. Sensing her dilemma, Edward squeezed her hand gently, then released it, saying, "How about you spend some time with Jasper? You two have a lot to catch up on."

Clara nodded, then turned to Jasper and Alice, the only two left in the room. Alice stood on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to Jasper's cheek, making Clara's eyebrow twitch, then sped away to an unknown room in the house. Looking back at Jasper, Clara signed,

"Do you know ASL?"

Jasper smiled, "Of course," he signed back. Clara let out a huge sigh of relief that was mixed with a laugh. She turned back to Edward with a wide smile on her face, which he returned with a smaller smile of his own. She turned back towards Jasper and felt Edward leave the room, giving the two their much-needed privacy.

Suddenly alone with Jasper, Clara felt a wave of awkwardness come over her, confronted with the reality of actually having to talk to him now. After a few seconds, though, she felt herself calm down, leaving all feelings of awkwardness behind her. It was strange, to say the least. She looked at Jasper to see the guilty look on his face.

"Sorry," he signed, "That was me."

"A gift?" she signed back.

"Yes," he nodded as he signed, "I can manipulate as well as feel other people's emotions. I hope that's not too weird for you. I won't use it on you if you don't want me to," signing at the speed of light.

Clara shook her head, a growing smirk on her face, "If I can stand Edward reading my thoughts, this is nothing," she joked, walking to the couch. He sat in the chair next to her, keeping a respectful distance while allowing a clear view of her face.

"You like him," Jasper stated, not asking, rather confirming. Clara was a bit stunned, signing,

"Did you read my emotions?"

"Yes, but it doesn't take my gift to tell. You are very comfortable with him, and his emotions reflect that," he confirmed. Clara looked away, slightly embarrassed. This wasn't exactly how she thought her first conversation with her dad would go, she thought to herself, then heard a laugh from upstairs. She shook her head at Edward's inability to stay out of her thoughts and focused back on the conversation.

"He's been good to me. I trust him," she smiled. _With everything_, she thought, hoping he picked up on that thought.

Jasper nodded his head, "I'm glad," he signed, "I've known Edward a long time. He's a good man."

"How long have you been here?" she asked, guiding the conversation toward what she truly wanted to talk about- his past.

"Since 1950," he answered, "I met Alice in 1948 and she led us to this coven," he recalled with a fond smile on his face. "I was in a dark place back then," he stated ominously.

Clara encouraged him to continue, giving him a short nod while keeping as much eye contact as she could with him. He took a deep breath and signed, "Might as well start at the beginning, huh?"

"They are usually a good place to start," she gave him an encouraging smile. Even though she knew his story, she knew it was important to hear it from himself, and she would give him hers in return. This was more than story time, this was their first steps in building trust.

* * *

After his story was over, Clara let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. His story was even more tragic hearing him tell it. You could tell he was trying to brush past the less appealing parts of it, but nevertheless, it made her want to cry. She would gladly rip Maria to shreds if he wanted her to, she thought maliciously.

It was her turn to tell her story she realized with a sigh. It definitely wasn't as dramatic as his story, but a story about your death is not an easy one to tell. She took a breath, then signed,

"The beginning."

"The beginning," he repeated, a sympathetic smile on his face.

"I was 18 when I died, then became reborn. I came down with Hay Fever after spending more time in the wheat fields than I should have. The rain storm didn't help, either," she confessed. "For the first few weeks, it was just the constant sneezing and coughing, but then I struggled to breathe and fainted one morning." She saw the event as if it happened yesterday.

* * *

Clara sneezed into her handkerchief for the fifteenth time that day, she was sure, and it wasn't even breakfast yet. This cold was lasting much longer than she had anticipated, and her grandparents were starting to worry.

"It's high time we call the doctor, Lucy," her grandfather said gruffly at the dining table. Clara sniffled and replaced her handkerchief in her dress pocket, out of sight.

"I'm fine, Papa," he replied, "It's just allergies. The seasons are changing," she defended, but had to stop to take deep breaths. She didn't confess this, but she labored in her chores the past few mornings, needing frequent breaks to catch her breath. She knew she couldn't slack on her chores, though, for she was the only one who could do them, so she kept her mouth shut.

"Besides," she said, standing up from the table, "I'm sure it'll pass… any… day now…," she trailed off, eyes rolling back in her head, and seeing nothing but blackness.

When she regained consciousness, she felt a warm blanket over her and a soft mattress under her, a feather poking her in the leg. She tried to take a deep breath but couldn't. Her windpipe seemed to be half the size as usual. She struggled to get air in, seeing black spots when she opened her eyes. Laura was closest to her, holding her hand and patting a damp towel on her forehead. Clara then heard a strange rattling noise, it seemed to be getting louder the more she regained consciousness. Just as she was about to ask what it was, she was hit with a coughing fit, then realized what the sound was. It was her. The sound of her labored breathing was the loud, rattling noise she heard. She was scared in that moment. She felt lightheaded from not getting enough air, and she felt too weak to move. _Am I dying?_ She wondered. She frantically tried looking around for her grandparents, but lost consciousness before she could find them.

What seemed like an eternity later, she was awoken with an excruciating pain radiating throughout her entire body. She knew if she could scream, she would, but she somehow couldn't get her face to work. She tried opening her eyes, mouth, anything, but nothing was working. The rest of her body was responding normally to the pain, however, jerking and twisting with the pain. She thought she had died and gone to hell, screaming in her mind to God, pleading for mercy. Mercy wasn't given to her, however, and she continued to writhe in agony for the next eternity.

Soon enough, however, she awoke to find Mary, and the two embarked on their nomadic life, but not before she managed to steal a picture of her family from her old room. They traveled the country, never getting too close to civilization or each other. The years blurred together, Clara filling them with sketches from her sketchbook or whittling flutes to pass the time. More than anything, though, she longed for a family, but didn't know how to leave Mary. Discovering the Denali coven was the greatest thing that had ever happened to her.

* * *

"Mary," Jasper signed, "Was she small, young-looking?"

"Yes," she replied, "She said she knew you," she confessed.

Jasper nodded, "She helped me escape Maria. I told her to keep an eye out for you, not change you!" he angrily stated.

"If she hadn't, I would've died in 1881. I never would've met you. I never would've had a true family," Clara tried soothing him with a small smile on her face. "I just wish I knew about this animal diet sooner," she said.

"If you're diligent, it won't take long for your eyes to turn gold like ours, don't worry. This is just the beginning."

"A beginning indeed."

* * *

**A/N: Don't forget to leave a review! Love you all!**


	7. Chapter 6

**A/N: Guys. I know. It's been too long. Hopefully you all are still sticking with this story because I'm not done! School just took over my life for a while, but the semester is over in two weeks then I'll be able to write more. Enjoy this chapter and let me know what you think!**

* * *

After spending a few more hours "talking" and laughing with Jasper, Clara found herself yearning for the comfort of the outdoors again. She had never stayed indoors for too long as a nomad, for she never needed to. She rarely stayed any longer than an hour in the Denali's house when she stayed there. She needed the fresh air, the sounds of wildlife and nature.

Having picked up on her thoughts, and since there was a lull in the conversation, Edward materialized beside her, placing his hand on her shoulder seemingly instinctually. She smiled up at him, happy and relieved to see him again, even though it had only been a few short hours since she'd seen him last, and she could feel his presence near her the entire time. Maybe she was going crazy? She seemed far too attached to someone she just met a little over a week ago, but she didn't really mind. He was sweet, thoughtful, caring, and always seemed to be there whenever she needed him; whether that was due to his mind-reading or not, it didn't matter to her. And when he looked at her like that, like he could do nothing but just stare at her for the rest of eternity…

Edward's lip twitched in amusement but also sincerity. Clara had a passing thought to be embarrassed of her read thoughts but couldn't seem to find the will to do so. She not only trusted him with her thoughts, but she _wanted_ him to hear them. It hadn't occurred to her before then, but she wanted him to know what she was thinking. It made her feel closer to him than she'd ever felt with anybody (not that she'd known too many people, but still). His eyes held a serious note to them, and his smirk faded away until they were just staring at each other, stuck in their timeless world. A shift in Jasper's weight finally caught her attention, forcing it away from Edward's bottomless eyes, and did end up feeling the familiar wave of embarrassment for essentially ignoring him for who knows how long.

"I'd like to go outside for a spell," she signed while mouthing the words. She always felt more animated and understood when she mouthed the words while signing. The chance of slipping up and letting a word out was greater that way, but she never let her guard down.

Jasper chuckled and replied, "By all means, take as long as you'd like. I can see your southern roots haven't faded much," he added with a wink, proud smile on his face.

"Oh," she signed, "I guess I never noticed. I'm not around civilization much or really… anyone else, so I never lost my accent. I think it's just a part of who I am now," she shrugged.

"It's perfect," Jasper replied, speaking instead of signing, "I can't wait to hear it myself."

Clara sighed, dropping her eyes. "Hopefully that day will come."

"It will," he stressed, stepping forward to grab her hand, but she stiffened completely, eyed trained on the hand paused midway to hers. Jasper met her eyes, taking in something, whether that be her emotion or just the look on her face, she didn't know. Perhaps both.

After a breath, he pulled away. "I guess I'll leave you to it, then. I'll be here if you need me, or anyone else here. They'd all love to get to know you. I feel it radiating off them in waves," he grinned.

Clara released a puff of air. "I can't wait to know them, too," she signed, "Your new family," she finished, but without any resentment present. She was genuinely happy for the father she never knew. She was grateful for this coven for opening their arms to him and letting him become a part of their family. Something she could never thank them enough for.

She felt a hand squeeze her shoulder and met Edward's waiting eyes. She was mildly surprised he hadn't said anything or make so much as a move since he's come to her. Waiting on her to make her decision, she guessed. She smiled at him and nodded, expressing her desire to return to the woods and sketch. She missed the feeling of her pencils beneath the paper, crafting black-and-white leaves beneath her fingertips. Looking at Edward's face, she suddenly had an idea. Edward caught it and raised an eyebrow. She simply smiled and nodded in return. The two ran off to the forest together, not noticing that Jasper had left them alone for his room for several minutes.

* * *

Jasper materialized in the doorway, causing Alice to look up from her own sketchbook. She gave him a soft smile, one which he returned. The next thing she knew, he was buried in her arms, his head in her neck.

"Oh, Alice," he murmured. She could sense the joy he was feeling, bursting her spirits. She rubbed her hand down his back, patiently waiting for him to lead the conversation.

After a few seconds, he pulled away, sitting next to her on the bed she had positioned herself on before he had arrived. She leaned her head on his shoulder, taking his hand in hers.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Jasper whispered in her hair.

Alice sighed. "You have no idea how much I wanted to," she responded, pulling away to look him in the eyes, even though he could feel her sincerity. "I wanted this meeting to go as flawlessly as possible, and this was the only way. In fact, even today was a gamble," she confessed. "Fate must have been on our side," she smiled.

"How long have you known?" he asked, eyebrows furrowed.

Alice inwardly braced herself. "I had my first vision of the two of you together right when we first moved to Forks."

Jasper's back stiffened and he stopped moving his thumb over the back of her hand, a pit forming in her stomach. "You've known for… two years? And kept her a secret this long?" He shook his head, looking away from her, then blew a puff of air from his nose. "I'm even more surprised you kept it from Edward. Did you know the two of them…," he trailed off.

Alice shook her head, "Not until he left for Denali. I couldn't get many concrete visions of her because she kept moving, not making any plans for the future. When they decided to go to Denali, I saw her with Edward and the vision of the two of you together got stronger, but occasionally I'd get a vision of you meeting her and… well… questioning her existence… essentially," she finished awkwardly, gauging his reaction.

Jasper pursed his lips, meeting her eyes again, "After one look I just… knew. The resemblance is… astounding to say the least. But I think you were right to be careful. My first instinct was to be untrustworthy and defensive. I can't imagine how poorly that meeting could have gone under different circumstances… the possibility of me attacking her…," a shudder went through him. "I have no shortage of enemies out there. It wouldn't be too far-fetched for one of them to use her against me or go as far as to pretend to be her to get to me."

He pulled Alice in his arms. "Thank you, Alice," he said, "Thank you for bringing her to me." His grip on her was so tight, it was almost uncomfortable, but Alice didn't say anything or dare feel any discomfort. All she could feel was elation and love for her mate, and anticipation for her chance to truly meet Clara for the first time. She wondered as to what sort of relationship they would have. Since Jasper was her father and Alice and Jasper were mates, let alone married, did that make Alice her mother? Would Clara want a mother? Alice considered Esme the much more mothering type. Alice didn't even remember her own mother, let alone know the first thing about being one. Clara was no child anymore, by any means, anyway. In fact, she was about 50 years her senior!

Alice's spiraling thoughts caught Jasper's attention. "Darlin', what are you thinking about? I'm getting a lot of mixed feelings from you, but mostly trepidation and nervousness. Are you nervous about meeting Clara? She'll love you, I promise," he assured her.

Alice shook her head. "I'm not _nervous_ per say, but she is your daughter. You're her father. Does that make me her mother? I don't want to force anything on her by any means, but what if she does want a mother? Would I be that? Could I be that? I'm just not sure…" she trailed off, guiltily.

"Alice," Japer spoke softly. Alice met his eyes, taken by the tenderness that lay in them. "The idea of you being the mother to my child fills me with a joy I can't express, and you would be such an excellent mother. You're so giving, so kind. But I can't help but see the two of you as close friends rather than mother and daughter. You both have holes in your lives that the other can fill."

Jasper smiled down at her and she returned it, comforted by his words. Yes, being her friend, possibly even best friend, was a prospect she anticipated with excitement. She'd always wanted a best friend! And what he said about her being a good mother, well, it only made her heart swell even more with the love she had for him. She leaned up to peck him on the lips, which he reciprocated, but that wasn't enough for him as he met her lips again forcefully, catching her by surprise. She caught a tiny glimpse of a vision in that moment, one so quick she didn't have to break her kiss for it and realized the two of them would be busy for the (literally) foreseeable future.

* * *

Clara glanced up at her current sketching model. She'd actually never had a person model for her before, her only other subject being animals or vegetation. Mary was the only one around and she refused to sit still long enough to be sketched, nor did she want an image of herself, so that was that. She was a little out of her element sketching the smooth, rounded lines of the cheek and jawbone, the eyes were frustratingly difficult to capture, and she couldn't seem to get the shape of the nose just right. After erasing a mark for the hundredth time, rattled at her inability to perfectly capture Edward's beauty, she caught the slightest twitch of the lip from the subject himself. She deflated immediately, sensing how childish she was being. The nose was fine, but she couldn't seem to leave it alone.

"Are you almost finished?" Edward softly asked, smirk in place.

Clara sighed, trying not to let her responding smile break through. "Almost," she thought, giving him a wink. The gesture surprised even her, but she didn't miss the way Edward's breath was momentarily caught in his throat, giving her a boost of satisfaction. Making her finishing touches and distinctly avoiding looking at the sketched Edward's nose too long, she blew across the page, and handed the notebook over to him.

Edward's lips parted as he saw the sketch, handing the book with such gentleness, she wasn't even sure he was holding it. It appeared to just be floating in his fingertips, sure to stay wrinkle-free. Clara watched as his eyebrows came together slightly, making a small wrinkle in between them. She resisted the urge to gently smooth it out with her fingertips.

Edward's eyes met hers instantly and she realized that he had definitely picked up on that thought, making her feel a bit embarrassed. She suddenly became very interested in a weed growing next to where she sat on the cool ground. She tried not to think too much, knowing they had a tendency of getting her in trouble, but she couldn't reign them in fast enough. What was she doing? He was this wonderful, amazing, let alone gorgeous man and what was she? She was awkward, introverted to the point that she didn't know how to act around people, and she had a gift that wouldn't let her talk to them, either! She was damaged, broken. She didn't deserve a family, nor their love. She'd taken too many lives for that.

She felt Edward shift, knowing he was trying to meet her eyes for a while now and now was changing tactics and reaching his hand out towards her, but she wouldn't, couldn't, meet his eyes. In a flash, she got up, grabbed her bag and darted to the house leaving nothing but her sketchbook and a thought "I'm sorry" behind.

She wasn't fast enough. She felt a hand grab her wrist, making her freeze in her tracks. Instinctually, she raised her shoulders, feeling her entire body tense up. As quickly as it had arrived, the hand let go, allowing her to relax. She took a calming breath as Edward spoke.

"I'm sorry, Clara, forgive me, I just… the way you were thinking it just… I had to stop you, had to make sure you knew how wrong you were. Are. I shouldn't have grabbed you like that, I'm sorry. Please forgive me," he begged.

Clara slowly turned her head to look at him, taking in his sorrowful eyes and arm still halfway extended towards her. She tried to remember the last time someone touched her, not her initiating the contact. A memory of Mary placing her hand on top of hers soon after her change appeared. Clara was mourning her human life, her family. Mary tried to offer a small amount of comfort. That was the last time she had been touched by another. That was 150 years ago.

Edward's eyes grew wide, unbelieving. Slowly, he stepped towards her, palms up, while Clara stood frozen to the spot, not knowing what he was doing.

"Clara," he breathed, taking another step. He was an arm's length away from her now. "I had no idea how long it had been since you had been touched. I never would have done that otherwise. I want every touch I give you to be caring, gentle, loving," he said softly. He was standing mere inches away from her.

Loving? Her eyebrows furrowed at that. Did that mean he-? Does he-? She couldn't finish her thoughts even if she wanted to, too scared to know the answers to her questions. So slowly she almost missed it, his hand, the same one that clenched her wrist came up near her face. She couldn't move. She didn't dare breathe.

"I don't know how this happened. But I don't want to fight it, either. I can't seem to stop thinking about you, wanting to be near you, wanting to know everything about you. I want to hear stories of your past, help and protect you in the present and spend every last day with you in the future. I'm sorry if this is too much for you, and if it is, I'll back off immediately, but I can't keep this in anymore. Since I can read your thoughts, I wanted you to know mine." His breath was merely a whisper as his hand finally made it to her cheek, where it hovered millimeters away.

Clara looked into his eyes. They were warm, open. They wanted _her_. _He_ wanted her. Like she wanted him. But, how? Why?

Still keeping his hand unmoving, he replied to her thoughts, "Because you are so different than anyone I've ever met before. You're so beautiful, inside and out. And I am the perfect judge of character," he added with a smirk.

Clara couldn't help the twitch of her lips at that, but looked down when he mentioned her beauty. She hardly held a candle to the man before her! But then she realized what he was saying. If he didn't love her now, he certainly was headed that direction, and she knew because she felt the exact same way. She wanted to be with him always, even when she panicked and ran from him, the only "home" she would ever run to was him. She loved his easy smirks, his caring and gentlemanly nature, the way he knew exactly what to say at the right time. But above that, they fit together. Where she was weak, he was strong. Where he faltered, she picked up the slack.

He said it perfectly when he said he didn't know what this was but didn't want to fight it. She didn't want to fight it, either. She brought her eyes back up to his, and contrasting the gradual way he brought his hand to her cheek, she instantly brought her hand to cover his, fast enough to create a breeze that blew both their hair back. She hardly noticed this, though, as her entire focus was on his face as she pushed his hand to meet its goal. When his skin touched hers this time, it sent a shiver down her spine. He simply belonged there.

Either much too slowly or much too quickly, Edward's face was meeting hers, his head tilting sideways, eyes fluttering closed. Was he… was this a kiss? She didn't dare close her eyes as his lips lightly grazed hers in a gentle touch, then again, slightly stronger. She didn't know what to do, but didn't exactly want him to stop, pleading with him inwardly to allow her to adjust. Thankfully, he did, pulling away ever so slightly to not overwhelm her. Would she never stop being grateful to and for this man?

Taking a breath in an attempt to relax herself (which may or may not have helped since he smelled exquisite and was _right there_), it was his turn to freeze as she closed the distance between them, but landed her lips on his cheek instead. It was still the closest touch she'd given someone and meant a lot to her. She hoped he knew that and was not disappointed. When she pulled away, she knew that he wasn't as he looked like he'd be in tears if he was human and pressed a kiss to her temple. Those simple touches made her feel such love and belonging that she was almost overwhelmed.

"Edward," she thought. "I can't wait to say your name aloud and not fear the repercussions. I want all your emotions, especially surrounding myself, to be yours and yours alone," she finished, running her fingers over his sideburn. His eyes fluttered closed at the touch and he leaned his forehead against hers.

"Your voice is still the most beautiful I've ever heard, with or without the gift," he murmured, his breath warming her nose.

Clara almost chuckled aloud. "You've only ever heard me speak _with _the gift," she thought, pulling back to look into his eyes. His arms wound their way around her so as to make sure she didn't pull farther away, and while she was still getting use to this close contact, she couldn't help but feel safe and secure in his arms.

Edward did chuckle aloud. "Okay, that's true. We'll just keep practicing. Keep trying. You will figure this out, I promise. We all will."

* * *

She had to get out of there. Now.

Mary darted from alleyway to alleyway, praying that her opportunity to escape would be around the next turn. It never was.

The smell of smoke and burned venom tingled her nostrils, filling her with terror. She was innocent, but they didn't know that.

She saw an unlit street, the only thing separating her from the safety of the woods where she could possibly escape, but she'd be completely exposed if she went for it. She was out of time. She had to move.

She ran the fastest she'd ever ran before, making it to the pavement, then the yellow dotted line, and just when she put her foot down on the grass, inches away from freedom, arms like iron bars wrapped around hers, pulling her back. Dragging her back across the pavement. She could see the trees getting farther and farther away from her, branches moving in the wind as if sending their farewells. She almost begged the trees to take her, rescue her, in her panic. She didn't have the chance.

Suddenly, she was whipped around and placed on her feet, barely managing to maintain her balance. Her breath was going in and out at an immeasurable rate, but she couldn't stop it. She was going to die. This was the end.

"Ah… My dear Maria… now, what have you gotten yourself into this time?" the sickly-sweet voice asked her. She took in the figure's black robe, matching long, black hair atop the only head without the hood in place, and red eyes that were cold and calculating underneath the guise of kindness. She yanked her head down in an attempt to bow, finding an excuse to look away from his stare.

"My lord, I was not affiliated with them, the newborn nor his sire. I was merely passing through," she uttered through trembling lips, slowly lifting her head back up.

The smile only got wider as he stepped closer, hand extended to her. She felt the arms restraining her loosen completely, freeing her arms. She stared at the approaching hand warily, but knew she had no other choice. The second she started lifting her hand, it was suddenly enveloped in his, his eyes becoming unseeing. It took everything in her not to tremble in fear.

"Oh my…," he breathed, eyes still unfocused. He cocked his head, eyes wide, then quickly dropped her hand. The arms restraining her previously reappeared, and she forced herself not to struggle.

"Mary, Mary, Mary. To think you've been keeping such a… treasure to yourself these past years. And to think of the possibilities! What a waste," he said cryptically.

Mary's breath caught in her throat. No… he knew. He knew everything. And… and she left her! She had to go to her, warn her somehow…

"Ah, well," he interrupted her thoughts, turning his back to her. "As useful as you have been to me in centuries past, you know why I simply cannot let you live now. It would be too risky. I can't trust you to keep things a secret," he looked back at her, smile still in place as she felt utter dread seep into her bones. She struggled full force now.

"No! Aro, don't do this! I've done nothing! You've seen my every thought, please!" she screamed, begging for her life, but it was no use.

"Felix."

The fire blazed.


End file.
